Balloting device



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' I 221 'Filed July31,l96 8 [45] Patented Nov. I7, 1970' [s4 normsDEVIVCE-I "Claims, mountn 52 05.0. 22 5/50" l l I tcove s/00 so n ldorsmnn; 23s/s1,so,w v ,-54A, D;.

' Human STATESPATENTS a 7,545 8/1850, l-Iil1. 23550 $12,699 1 111894Harm n 2 35/50 -620,699,- 3/1899 -Clifford 1235/501 12/1913 Henning1,080,444 235/50 1,109,124 9/1914 Grifl'ln 235/50 1,845,244 2/1932Cummings... q 235/50 1,947,157 2/1934 1 Harris 235150 2,195,848 4/ 1940Carroll 2 35/50 3,132,798 5/ 1964 Johnson et al 23 5/50 Y PrimaryEaqmin'ere-kichard B. Wilkinson Assistant Examiner-Stanley A, WalAttorneyplluebner 8c Worrel ABSTRACT: A portable balloting deviceparticularly suited for use by an electorate as a manually actuated,selectively operable voting machine, characterized bya plurality of"paired" voting plungers, vote eradicating plungers, and a manuallyactuated balloting lever for use in preparing a final machine ballotcomprising a selected slate of candidates and issue positions and thencasting votes by advancing preprinted 'vote' registering tapes inaccordance. with the finalized machine ballot.

Patented Nov. 17, 1970 3,540,649

EDWIN L. k/LL INVEN r01? lff I 4M,- 9 M Patented Nov. 17, 1970 Sheet 2of 6 EDWIN L. KILL IN VE N TOP A TTORNEVS Patented Nov. 17, 19703,546,649

Sheet 4 of6 30 Fad I WNW EDWIN L. K/LL INVEN 70/? MwfM A 77'OPNEVSPatented Nov. 17, 1970 Sheet EDWIN L. KILL IN VE N TOP Patented Nov. 17,1970 Sheet I 4 we foo/76 EDWIN L. KILL lNVENTO/P MW Kip M1,!

ATTO/PNEKS BALLOTING DEVICE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The instantinvention relates generally to voting devices and more particularly tomanually operated automatic voting machines employed by electors invoting at assigned polling places and for providing a current total ofthe votes cast for designated candidates and issues, as well as forproviding a count of the electors voting at the assigned polling places.

Heretofore, in conducting an election of candidates and issues it hasbeen necessary for members of the electorate to mark preprinted ballotsmanually with means such as punching, stamping or inking devices. Thevotes thus cast usually have then been tallied in a manual vote countingprocedure. Such operations normally require large numbers of man hours,both in the initial marking of the ballots and in the subsequent votecounting or talley operation. Furthermore,

often there are valid claims of voting irregularities and recording ofinaccurate results which are made possible through inadequacies inherentin this mode of conducting an election. Such inadequacies often lead torecounting the votes in a time consuming and expensive and generallyunsatisfactory process.

To overcome these difficulties, electronic or electrical devices havebeen proposed. However, in known electronic and electrical circuits, ormechanism employing such circuits, malfunction and power losses havecaused innumerable difficulties. As can be readily appreciated,inaccuracies, malfunctions, and loss of voting machine time are highlyundesirable. In attempts to overcome these inadequacies, manuallyactuated mechanical devices have been proposed, however, these devicesalso have failed to meet present requirements for providing a reliablesystem for casting votes, as their designs do not adhere to a scheme ofpreferred simplicity and economy.

Furthermore, previously known devices frequently do not register orprovide information normally desired in the voting process, such as, forexample, a running or current count of each vote cast for opposite sidesof issues and candidates, as well as a combined total of the ballotscast at a given polling place on election day.

In many instances where previously known devices and machines have beenemployed, costs have been found to be prohibitive. As voting machinesnormally are employed for only a relatively small number of man hoursper year, it can be appreciated that the expenses involved in'providingautomatic voting machines must be maintained at a minimum level.

Heretofore, the desired economy has not proven practical because of thecomplexity of the known voting machines.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 1 I This invention overcomes or minimizes theaforementioned difficulties through the provision ofa simplified,positively ac-. tuatcd mechanical device which serves to provide anaccurate count for the votes cast for each issue and for each candidateas well as for the total number of ballots cast during a given period.

Accordingly, an object of the instant invention is to provide asimplified voting machine for casting ballots in the exercise providesan accurate count of the number of electors casting ballots.

Another object is to provide a simplified, accurate and inexpensivemechanically actuated device which is capable of providing acontinuouscount of the votes cast for each candidate and each issue inthe polling place.

Another object is to provide a portable device which is simple andeconomical to fabricate, which can be transported to the polling placesand employed in voting booths by individual electors of the electoratemanually manipulating all of the voting and talley devices.

These, together with other objects and advantages will become morereadily apparent by reference to the following description and claims inlight of the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an assembledvoting machine embodying the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the machine of'FIG. 1 with a portion of thehousing broken away illustrating the arrangement ofmachine components. i

FIG. 3 is a side elevation, principally in section, taken generally online 3-3 of FIG. 2 showing the various components employed by thedescribed embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectioned elevation taken generally along lines 4-4 ofFIG.3.

FIG. 5 is a front elevation, with a portion of the housing having beenremoved, taken generally along lines 5-5 of FIG. 3, illustrating thecounting mechanisms and preprinted tapes employed by the presentinvention.

FIG. 6 .is a sectioned plan view taken along lines 6-6 of FIG.

FIG'. 7 is a sectional view taken along lines 77 of FIG. 3 il lustratingthe lockout mechanisms employed in the embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 8, 9 and 10 constitute illustrations of the various positionsassumed by the same components during various operations of the drivemeans employed to advance the tapes em ployed by the hereinafterdescribed embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 11 is a front view, in section, of the device provided forsupplying a current total count of the number of electors or votersemploying the machine, and taken generally along lines 11-11 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of one of the plurality of tape advancingmodules of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Turning first to FIG. 1, a voting machineembodying the principles of the instant invention is illustratedgenerally at 10. The machine includes a housing 12 provided with a pairof access doorsl4 and 16 mounted by hinges l5 and 17, respectively, toprovide authorized access to the driving mechanisms of the machine ordevice 10. A lock 18 of conventional design and construction is providedand mounted to couple the doors l4 and 16 in a secured relationship.Mounting lugs 20 are fixed in any suitable manner to the housing 12 sothat the device 10 may be bolted or otherwise fixed to supportingstructure normally found within appropriate enclosures as is normallyprovided at polling places.

The technique employed for fabricating the housing 12 is of noparticular consequence so long as the housing is made tamper-proof. Asshown, rivets 22 are employed to couple or join the various structuralpanels of the housing 12 together. However, it is readily apparent thatother means, such as tack or spot welds, could be employed to secure thehousing panels in their assembled condition.

Extending across the uppermost portion of the housing 12 is a row ofaligned voting plungers 30 which extend through suitable openingsprovided in the housing 12. Manipulation of a plunger 30 serves todesignate a candidate or an issue position for which a vote is to becast. Mounted adjacent to the row of plungers 30 there'is a keycomprising a schedule 32 which serves to designate the candidate orissue position associated with each of the voting plungers 30. It willbe appreciated that as a practical matter, at subsequent elections eachof the voting plungers will be employed to cast votes for new ordifferent candidates and issues. Therefore, in order to facilitatereuse, the key 32.may comprise a printed card listing the candidate andissue positions on the housing. If desired, the schedule 32 is formed asa permanent plate such as a metallic sheet embossed with the names ofthe candidates and an identification of current issues. Such a plate issecured to the door 14 in any suitable manner, such as, for example,

round head screws 33 secured by nuts disposed at the inner or lower sideof the door 14. v

Paired with each of the voting plungers 30 is a vote eradicating plunger40. The purpose of the eradicating plunger 40 will hereafter be morefully discussed, however, it suffices to understand that the eradicatingplunger 40 permits an elector or voter to change his vote in making afinal selection of candidates and/or positions on issues. This isachieved by depressing a plunger 40 to release the paired plunger 30without recording a vote, in order that another of the plungers 30 maybe depressed thus to prepare a finalized ballot to be cast by themachine. As each of the plungers 30 is depressed, the machine is set tovote in a given way, however, when a lever 40, which is paired with alever 30, is depressed, the paired lever 30 is released withoutregistering a vote; Consequently, and as can be readily appreciated, avoter may make many preliminary selections or thus construct preliminaryballots in the process of preparing or constructing a final selection orfinal ballot which is established only when there has been a finaldepression of selected plungers 30.

After having prepared a final ballot, the elector merely manipulates aballoting lever 42 in order to cast his vote or ballot. The lever 42drives a vote counter mechanism, hereinafter more fully described, toregister the votes in accordance with the final ballot prepared throughthe final depression of the levers 30. As will hereinafter be more fullydescribed, the machine also includes a ballot counter 44 which serves toprovide a current count of the number of voters employing the machine ina given'period of time. The counter 44 thus provides a simple means forchecking or verifying the count of the individual ballots cast by eachmachine.

It is to be understood that as many plungers 30 and 40 may be providedas is required. These plungers may be aligned as a single bank ofparallel rows, as illustrated, or if desired, the rows may be aligned asmultiple pairs or banks of plungers. Should the plungers 30 and 40 bealigned in multiple banks,

I the housing 12 will incase the mechanism with the doors 14 being soarranged as to provide-access to the mechanism through the top portionofthe housing 12.

Turning now to FIG. 2, and particularly FIG. 3, there is illustrated themechanism employed in the described embodiment of the invention. Coupledwith the voting plungers 30 is a plurality of vote registeringmechanisms 50. Asmore clearly shown in FIG. 5, each of the voterregistering mechanisms 50 is of the same construction and functions inessentially the 'same manner to achieve a like result. Therefore, and inthe interest of brevity, a detailed description of only one of themechanisms 50 will be provided with it being understoodthat theremaining mechanisms 50 function in-a like manner andare capable ofbeing interchanged thus to achieve flexibility.

Looking particularly to FIGS. 3 and 12, it is noted that the mechanism50 includes a preprinted tape 52 fed from a supply spool 54. The tape 52ultimately is wound about a takeup spool 56. As the tape 52.is woundabout the spool 56 it is caused to traverse a bearing support 58, whichas a matter of convenience functions as a vote registering station.

As shown, the tape 52 is provided with indicia comprising a numericalsequence. As will hereinafter be more clearly undcrstood, the tape 52 isadvanced at support 58 in incremental steps so that each advance in thesequence indicates an additional vote for the designated candidate orissue. The spools 54 and 56 are supported by a support plate 59,,asshown in FIG. 12, and are removably mounted for rotation on shafts 60and 62. respectively. While various devices are available to prevent an.overrunning of the spool 54, it has been found preferable to employabraking device includinga drum 64 fixedly coupled to the spool 54, abrake support block 65 fixed to the support plate 59, and aspring-biased brake shoe 66 ex- 66 could be adjustably mounted, howeveras a practical I matter, it has proven to be satisfactory to adjust thebiasing means so that the shoe 66 engages drum 64 with a given or fixedpressure so that the pressure applied thereto is constant as the spool56 draws the tape 52 from the spool 54.

With particular reference to FIG. 12, it will be appreciated that thesupport plates 59 impart a modular characteristic to the assembledmechanism 50. Thus, each tape 52 is mounted in a separate modularcomponent and may be readily removed in its wound condition with asubstitute therefor being supplied without encountering difficulties ofthe type which normally plague those handling spools of tape. In orderfor the plates 59 to be readily mounted within and removed from thehousing 12, each plate 59 is slotted at its opposite ends thus toprovide a pair of mounting slots 67 extending parallel to thelongitudinal axis of the plate. Each of the slots receives one of a pairof mutually displaced transverse mounting beams 68 therein, FIGS. 3 and6, which serve removably to support the spools in their operativedisposition.

The beams 68 may be mounted in the machine in any suitable manner. Ithas, in practice, been found adequate to provide right-angled tabs 69,FIG. 2, removably seated in suitable slots for supporting the uppermostbeam while the lowermost beam is fixed by a weld in its transversealignment. Hence, the plates 59 are removably supported in a manner suchthat the tapes 52 may be advanced through an actuation of drive meanscoupled therewith.

In order to drive the takeup spools 56 in rotation about the shafts 62,there are provided ratchet wheels 70 fixedly secured to the spools 56.Therefore, as the ratchet wheels 70 are rotatably advanced in a givendirection, the spools 56 are driven in a direction to wind or draw thetapes 52 from the spools 54. In order to function as ratchet wheels,each wheel 70 is provided with a multiplicity of ratchet wheel teeth 72.As is common in ratchet drives, the teeth of the ratchet wheels 72 areeach provided with conventional camming surfaces 74 and radial stops orshoulders 76 which intersect to establish ratchet wheel detents 78. Thecamming surfaces 74 and stop shoulders 76 serve as means for controllingthe rotation and actuation of the ratchet wheels 70.

As shown in FIG. 3, in order to prevent a counterrotation or unwindingrotation of the spools 56, a plurality of ratchet stops 80 arespring-biased to ride on the camming surfaces 74 and seat in detents 78,whereby rotation in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 3, isaccommodated, while a counterclockwise rotation is precluded by the stop80 as it is seated in one of the detents 78. Each stop 80 isbiasedfby asupporting leaf spring 82 depending from transversely aligned andremovably mounted beam '83. The springs 82 permit the stops 80 to rideoutwardly as the cam surfaces 74 are advanced in engagement therewithand then force the stops 80 to seat in an associated detent 78'of theratchet wheel 70.

As hereinbefore mentioned,'the tapes 52are drawn in steps from thespools 54 in response to the stepped rotation imparted to the ratchetwheels 70. This incremental stepping of the tapes, in effect, serves toregister votes for issues and candidates since the indicia provided onthe tape 52 is spaced at a distance which corresponds to one incrementalstep of the tape. For convenience, it has been decided that the voteregistering position, designated 84, will be at the point the tapemounted drive pawl 90. Each pawl is spring-biased to seat in a detent78'and engages-the adjacent shoulder 76 of a tooth 72. The pawls 90serve to apply a lifting force to the teeth of the wheels 70 as plungers30 are driven upwardly thus to impart rotation to the wheels 70.

In order to drive the pawl 90, a leaf spring 92 is employed to couplethe pawl 90 with the shaft of the adjacent plunger 30.

Each'sprin'g 92 is fastened to a plunger 30 in any suitable fashion,such' as, for example, by a conventional threaded screw 94. Hence, itwill be appreciated that as the plunger 30 is depressed, thespring-biased pawl 90 rides on the camming surface 74 of an adjacentratchet wheel 70 as the wheel is held stationary by the stop '80. Whenthe plunger 30 moves upwardly, as viewed in FIG. 3, the pawl 90 drivesagainst the surface of the shoulder 76 to lift the tooth and impartrotation to the ratchet wheel 70. The stop 80 is permitted to ride onthe camming surface 74 as a tooth 72 is rotated in engagement As willbe'appreciated in order that a ballot be cast by the voting mechanism,itis preferable that a plurality of the plungers 30 be sequentiallydepressed and then released in unison so that all of the tapes 52 whichare to be advanced, can be advanced one step'in unison. Hence, itis'highly desirable that there be provided means which permit theplungers to be depressed or forced downwardly into a depressed conditionand then held there until such time as it is desired to release all ofthe plungers 30 and thus record the votes. Hence, each of the plungers30 is spring-biasedin a vertical direction by a tension spring 100secured between the housing 1 2 and a coupling bar 102 which is mountedto extend at right angles from each ofthe shafts 30, as shown in FIG. 3.It is to be understood that a force manually applied to the plungers 30,in a downward direction, will cause the spring 100 to be extended 'intension, when the force is removed from the plunger 30, the spring 100will act to draw the shaft of the plunger 30v upwardly. The forceapplied by the spring 100 must of course be sufficient to impartrotation to the ratchet wheel 70.

In order to construct a ballot, the elector or voter selects appropriateplungers 30, as designated by the key 32, and forces them downwardlyintoa locked or a set position. This fset position is achieved through thecooperative action of a dog 104 and a stop pawl 106. The dog 104comprises a right-angle shoulder 105 formed on the vertical surface ofthe shaft plunger 30 and further includes an inclined cam surface 108over which the pawl 106 is permitted to ride. The pawl 106 isspring-biased by a resilient supporting member or leaf spring 110 whichurgcs the pawl 106 toward the cam surface and shoulder of the dog 104.The spring 110 is coupled to thehousing 12 through a support beam 112and a mounting bracket 114 affixed thereto. The manner in which the pawl106 is forced into engagement with the shoulder 104 and removedtherefrom is better illustrated in FIGS. 8, 9 and 10.

Since it is intended that avoter construct a marked" ballot bydepressing the plungers 30, it is desirable that means be provided forreleasing the plungers 30 without imparting rotation to the wheel 70, sothat the voter may change his mind prior to constructing orestablishing'atinal ballot by depressing a finally selected group ofplungers 30.

Each drive pawl 90 has attached thereto a rectangular pawl extractingbail or bracket 120. This bracket serves to displace the pawl 90 inopposition to the bias of the leaf spring'92. Withdrawal of the pawl 90is achieved at right angles to the direction of travel of the plunger 30and a radial direction with respect to the shoulder 76 of the associatedratchet wheel.

-In order to achieve the withdrawal, thus to render the drive pawl 90inactive, each of the brackets 120 is provided at an outermost portionwith a cam follower 122, FIG. 9. The follower 122,engages and cooperateswith an inclined camming surface 124, FIG. 8, extending along the shaftof the adjacent eradicating plunger 40. Each surface 124 is arranged ina manner such that it passes between the driving pawl 90 and the cam 122as the plunger is displaced. It is to be understood that lateraldisplacement of the bracket 120 is required to be sufficient forwithdrawing the pawl 90 from the detent 78 of the ratchet wheel 70.Guides 128- mounted at each side of the plunger 30, as better seen inFIGS. 4 and 8,

serve to support the bracket 120 for reciprocation imparted by thespring 110 and the cam surface 124.

It will be understood that as the plunger 30 is depressed, bracket 120will move downwardly with the plunger 30 in a manner such that the drivepawl 90 is forced by the camming surface 74 in a lateral direction.Subsequently, the pawl 90 will seat in detent 78 under the influenceofthe leaf spring 92, once the plunger 30 has assumed its depressed orset" position, wherein the locking pawl 106 engages the shoulder of thedog-104 for retaining the plunger 30in its set or depressed position.Should-it be desired to change a vote and select another candidate orissue, it is only necessary to depress the plunger 40 so that the camsurface 124 is caused to act against cam follower 122 laterally towithdraw the drive pawl 90 from the detent 78. Hence, it will beunderstood that the thus initiated upward displacement of the plunger 30will be ineffective for advancing the ratchet wheel 70 in rotation aboutthe shaft 62.

Each of the plungers 40 is held in its ready or upwardly extended,position by means of a tension spring 130 and Y is. released the spring130 will contract to draw the bracket 132 fastened between the housing12 and the shaft of the plunger, whereby the depression of the plungerserves to apply tension to the spring 130 so that as the depressingforce plunger back to its ready or upwardly extended position.

In order for pawls 106 to be withdrawn from the dogs 104 cams 140 areformed as arcuate extensions of the leaf springs and extend into thepath of the surfaces of cams 126 fixed to the plunger 40 adjacent camsurfaces 124. Withdrawal of the pawls 106 is achieved as the surfaces ofthe cams 126 engage the arcuate surface of cam 140 and act against thebias of the springs 110.

Consequently, when a plunger 30 is in a seated position with the pawl106 seated against the dog 104, and the associated pawl 90 is seated ina detent 78, depression of a paired" plunger 40'will cause a cam 124 toengage cam follower 122 and force the bracket to withdraw the drive pawl90 from the detent 78. Continued downward displacement of the plunger 40causes cam 124 to act against cam laterally to withdraw the pawl 106from the shoulder 104, whereupon the plunger 30 is permitted to returnupwardly to a ready posi 'tion under the influence of the attachedspring 100. As the downwardly applied pressure is removed from theplunger 40, it is permitted to be retracted under the influence of thespring 130. Since the drive pawl 90 is withheld from seating in thedetent 78, by the action of the cam surface 124, the plunger 30 is Ithus permitted to be reset imparting rotation to a ratchet wheel 70,andconsequently, no vote will be registered.

In view of the foregoing description of the plungers 30, it will beappreciated that it is not desirable that all of the plungers beaffordedthe opportunity to be displaced downwardly or depressedto a' setposition by the same voter. In other words, it is necessary that theplungers 30 be permitted to coact normally in opposed voting pairs. Forexample, if there are two candidates for one office, it is necessarythat a voter or elector be preventedfrom casting a vote for bothcandidates for that office.'hHence-,-- lock-out means in the form of camblocks 142 have been'provided adjacent to the lowermost end portions orprotrusions 143. of the plungers 30. Each of the protrusions 143includes a downwardly directed portion having a'wedge-shapedconfiguration and is provided with cam I surfaces 144 which serve toengage surfaces 146 of the cam blocks 142 for reasons which willhereinafter be more fully explained. c V, I c

As better shown in FIG. 7, each of the cam blocks 142 is supported fordisplacement into and out of the path of the depressed hence the Nplunger cannot be depressed because 'of the positioning of the adjacentblock 142; The write-in or protrusions 143 by means of resilient' pins150.* The resiliency I is intended to accommodate lateraldisplacement ofthe blocks 142. The blocks 142 are vertically supported for withdrawalby a horizontal supportingbracket152, FIG. 3, and a transversely alignedstop 153. Stop 153 includes a depending lip 154 which intersects thepath of and prevents excessive withdrawal or an inadvertent removal oftheblocks1'42 as they are extracted from beneath theprotr'usions of theshaft 30(The stop 153 is connected to thehousing 12 by threaded nut andscrew means 155. i I

The blocks 142 are so, arranged as to permit depression of one votingplunger 30 when all of'the blocks 142 are 'posi tioned beneaththeprotrusions 143 of theshaft 30, FIG. 4.

Whena single block 142 is withdrawn from beneath the order for anelector to select a ballot of candidates and issues, it is desirablethat the plungers be grouped in voting combinations, normally pairs, asaforediscussedl- That is, side-byside or paired plungers -30 should bedesignated to represent opposing candidates and opposing issues; Forexample, if the first in line' plunger is employed to represent aRepublican candidate, then the second in-line should be. employed 'todesignate a Democrat candidate. To achieve a condition wherein anelector can only vote'for'one candidate, of the pair of opposingcandidates, it is'desirable that a block 142 be provided for the twoplungers in order topair the plungers in opposed voting pairs. The samearrangement is to be duplicated for the third and fourth plungers, andso on down the line of voting plungers. Furthermore, the-phrase pairs ofopposing candidates is employed onlyas a matter of convenience and itshould be. readily apparent that it is intended that the device beemployed where there are several opposing issues or candidates within asingle political party or at asingle election.

and desirable may be provided in single or multiple banks. In

. As viewed in'. FIG. 4, the extreme lefthand plunger 30 is designated W/l which, for purposes of explanation only,

identifies, that plunger as being a plunger for write-in candidates, aswill hereinafter be more fully discussed. The'nett pair of plungers 30are designated Y and N, which,again at; purposes'of explanation,designate these plungers as Yes and No vote plungers for voting onissues such as, for example,.a bond issue, while the right hand pair. ofplungers 30 are designated Dand R which are-herein designated to serve{to identify these plungers as theplungers which when depressed W/Iplunger is freeto be depressed forpurposes of registering a write-invote .Should a voter decide to xvote for the Democrat candidate, theblock 142 will be cammed to a position beneath 'the R or Republicanplunger thus serving to block downward movement of that plunger. Thesame is true of the Y and N combination.

Therefore, it can be seen that by a selective withdrawal and positioningof the lockout blocks 142 a plurality of .voting pairs of plungers areprovided for establishing preliminary ballots to be machine cast. Thepreliminary ballot can selectively,

be changed thus to establish final ballots. In making these changes, avoter will always be precluded from voting for both opposing candidatesor opposing issues of voting pairs of can- 'didates andissues as aconsequence of .the positioning of blocks 142.

Each of the flexible pins 150 is provided with a right-angleprotrusionor integral member 156. This member cooperates with atransversely disposed pivoted locking beam 158 to retain the lockoutblocks 142 in their selected or prearranged positions, i.e. eitherbeneath or our of the path of the protrusions 143. As shown in FIG. 3,when the beam 158 is pivoted about a pivot 160, provided in any suitablemanner, toa

block-locking position, the right-angle protrusions l56'engage eitherside of the beam 158. Thisengagemerit serves to retain the lockoutblocks in their preselected position with respect to the plungers 30. Asa practical matter, access to the lockout.

pins 142 must be provided for. Therefore, a door 162, pivoted at 164, isprovided and includes a lock 166, similar to the lock 18', which servesto secure the housing thereof against .1

unauthorized access to the machine.

Once a voter has manipulated or depressed plungers 30 and, c, if needed,plungers 40 for thus choosing candidate and issue I positions for thusestablishing a preliminary ballot, then canceli'ng or eradicating thechoice, if desired, as many times as is required for thus establishingor constructing a final ballot, it l is preferable that means beprovided for simultaneously driving all of thetapesSZ in unison toeffect casting of the finalized ballot. The aforementioned lever'42serves as means for initiating simultaneous activation of the tape drivemea'nsjand is conne'ctedtoa release beam ,170 disposed adjacent and justabove each of the cam members 140. The purpose of the release beam 170is to engage each of the cams 140 and force a simultaneous withdrawal ofall seated pawls 106 which have been seated in the dogs 104 as aconsequence of the seating of 1 i the plungers 30. In order to achievethis, the release beam 170 is coupled to the lever 42 by means of apush-pull rod 172 having an eye 174 which receives therein a pivotedlever 176. The lever ,176' is pivoted to the housing 12 by suitablepivot means 178 and functions as an actuator for displacing the .beam170.

The end ofthe lever 176, opposite pivot 178, engages a depressor camsegment 180 fixed to the lever 42 so that 90 of pivotal displacement ofthe lever 42 will impart 90 of pivotal 'displacementto the depressor camsegment 180 and thereby i drive the adjacent end portion of the lever176 in a downward direction. The 'beam 170 and consequently the attachedlever 176 is constantly urged upwardly by a tension spring 182 fixed andreleased by the balloting lever will cast a vote foi la,"

Democratic or fice. l

For purposes of explanationof the operation of the lockout blocks 142only, it is assumed thatshould the left hand blo ek Republican candidatecompeting for one cf- 142 be withdrawn from beneath the protrusions,along w ill the third from the left lockout block. the right hand plungeIR is freeto be depressed, but the surface 144 of the protrus fpn 143willforcethe block 144 beneath the-plunger. D and blu t k depression ofthat plunger. As shown, the Y plunger has been drive the lev'er176 in adownward direction, the beam is thus forced downwardly into engagementwith the cams 140,

FIG. 9, to withdraw the pawl 106 from the shoulder. of the dog 104.Tracks 186, FIG. 4, are provided for receiving the ends of the releasebeam 170 therein to assure a proper positioning'of the beam; Hence, itwill be understood that the beam 170 is aligned with the tracks 186 forvertical displacement, which displacement is imparted by the lever 42acting through cam in conjunction with the pivoted actuator 176 andpush-pull rod 172 to release all of the depressed levers 30 to effect asimultaneous withdrawal of all pawls 106 from all dogs 104. Hence, asimultaneous stepping rotation is imparted to all selected ratchetwheels 70 by a vertical advancement of all seated pawls 90 thusincrementally to advance all of the selected associated tapes one stepthrough a stepped rotation of the appropriate takeup spools 56 foreffecting a registration of votes.

As it is important to keep a current record of the number of electors or.voters which have utilized or employed the machine on a given votingday, it is desirable that recording means be provided for recording eachcasting of a ballot by a voter at the polling place. In the describedembodiment of the present invention, there has been provided a voter orballot counter 44. The purpose of this counter is to register once foreach instance the balloting lever 42 is displaced through 90,or a finalballot is cast.

The device 44 is better illustrated in FIG. 11, and employs aprelettered or numbered tape 190 suspended between a supply roll 192 anda takeup roll 194. Rotation of the takeup spool 194 is achieved througha drive shaft 196 coupled with the lever 42. As shown in FIG. 3, theshaft 196 is supported in bearings 198 and is retained in a givenposition by torsion spring 200 acting to impose a torque in apredetermined direction to the shaft 196.

The device 44 is mounted in a suitable closed housing 201 and includes apawl and ratchet escape mechanism having a spring-biased-pawl 202 and aconventional ratchet wheel 204 connected to the spool 194. The pawl 202is forced into engagement with the ratchet wheel 204 by a leaf spring206. The spring 206 serves to support the pawl 202 in its operativeposition adjacent to the detents of the ratchet wheel 204. As anadditional means for insuring the proper rotation of the takeup spool194, the escape mechanism includes a springbiased stop or'pawl 208. Thepawl 208 is also biased into engagement with the detents of the ratchetwheel 204 thus to prevent backlash. Control of overrun rotation of thespool 192 is achieved through a frictional coupling imposed along thebearing surface of a supporting shaft 210 which supports the supplyspool for rotation. The takeup spool 194 is supported for rotation on ashaft 212 which is rotatably supported for rotation by the shaft 196.The ratchet wheel 204 is fixedly coupled to the spool 194 in a mannersuch that rotation ofthe spool is directly controlled through the escapemechanism including pawls 202 and 208 and the drive shaft 196.

In practice, it will be found highly desirable to provide for castingtheaforementioned write-in votes, that is candidates and issues whichare to be voted upon but which do not appear on the designating legendor key" 32.

The present invention contemplates such operation. This is achieved byproviding right-angle protrusions 220 at the uppermost ends oftheplungers 30. Normally, while not shown, it is preferred that each of theplungers 30 be equipped with a protrusion 220 which may be employed as ameans for registering a write-in vote for each given or specified groupof .candidates or issues. The lowermost portion of each protrusion 220,as viewed in H0. 3, is provided with a marker 222, which may be embossedin the form of an X, or other indicia and will make an'imprint upon apaper ballot moved or positioned beneath the protrusion when it isdepressed. Hence, the device of the present invention permits a write-inand separate recording thereof along with a finally prepared machinecast ballot. While the specific candidate or issue which has been votedupon, by write-in, will not be recorded by the voting mechanism, thetotal number of write-in ballots will be recorded in the device as thetape of the associated mechanism 50 is caused to be advanced.

OPERATION It is believed that in view of the foregoing description ofthe invention, the operation thereof is readily apparent. However, inorder to assure a complete and full understanding of the disclosedembodiment of the invention, a brief resume of the operation isprovided.

At the outset it may be assumed that a legend 32 designating thecandidates and/or issues to be voted upon has been prepared and mountedon the housing 12. It is also assumed that the blocks.142 have been soarranged and positioned that the levers 30 are paired in opposing votingpairs, whereby only one candidate of a pair of candidates or one side ofan issue can be voted by depressing levers 30. Tapes 52 will have beenprcpositioned so that at the first incremental step of the voteregistering mechanism the numeral 1 will appear at station 58. Also, thetape 190 is so positioned that the takeup spool 194 will be advanced oneincremental step at the first pivotal actuation of the lever 42. It is,of course, to be understood that the housing 12 has been secured againstunauthorized entry to locks 18 and 166, and the housing 12 has beensecured within a booth at a given polling place.

The voter considers the candidates and depresses a given or a selectedlever 30 forcing it to its seated position wherein the pawl 90 is thuscaused to be seated in the detent of the cam wheel or ratchet wheel 70in response to actuation of a spring 72. As a plunger 30 is downwardlydisplaced, the cam surface 144 of the protrusion 143 forces the block142 laterally into a position beneath the paired or adjacent plunger 30.This serves to prevent the second plunger of the pair from beingdepressed. If there is no block beneath a given plunger 30, the adjacentor paired plunger 30 will be blocked by displacement of the givenplunger as there can then be no lateral displace ment of the associatedblock 142 thus to permit it to be depressed. Of course, if the groupingof candidates includes three or more opposing candidates, an appropriatenumber of blocks will be-employed to prevent a voter from registering avote for more than one candidate, including a possible write-incandidate.

If the voter subsequently decides that he would like to vote the issuein an opposite manner, or select the other of a pair of opposedcandidates, it is only necessary for him to depress the plunger 40 inorder to withdraw the pawl 90 from the detent 78 and then the cam 106from the dog 104. The depressed plunger 30 is thus permitted to beforced upwardly without imparting rotation to the ratchet wheel 70.After a voter has manipulated the levers 30 in order first to establishor construct a preliminary machine ballot, and subsequently a final orfinalized ballot determining the manner in which he wishes to cast hisvotes, it is only necessary for him pivotally to rotate the lever 42.Rotation of the lever serves to pivot the lever [76 in a downwarddirection through the actuation of the depressing cam 1 80, whereuponthe eye 174 of the push-pull rod 172 is forced downwardly. As the lever176 is depressed the push-pull rod 172 causes the beam 170 to bedisplaced in a downward direction against the bias of the spring 182. Asthe beam 170 is caused to be depressed, it serves to engage the cam 140acting against springs 110 thus to cause the pawls 106 to be withdrawnfrom the lugs or dogs 104.

At this time, it will be noted that each of the driving pawls 90 ofthe-selectively depressed plungers is seated in a detent 78 of anadjacent ratchet wheel 70. Consequently, as the plunger 30 is biasedupwardly by the spring member 100, the

pawl 90 is forced against the shoulder 76 of the detent thus toimpartrotation to the ratchet wheel 70. This rotation is accommodated by pawl80 and leaf spring 82 which permits the pawl 80 to ride on the camsurface 74 as the wheel is rotated and yet lock the wheel 70 againstbacklash. The escapement mechanism 96 also aids in preventing backlashas the pawl is withdrawn from the detent 78. This incremental motion ofthe ratchet wheel 70 is imparted to the takeup reel 58 for thus drawingthe, associated tape 52 one incremental step over the support 58 toregister a vote.

As all of the votes to be cast have been determined through a finalmanipulation of the voting plungers 30, it will be appreciated that asingle rotation or displacement of the lever 42 will serve to releaseall of the depressed levers 30 in a single motion, whereby all selectedtapes 52 are caused to be advanced one incremental step to effect aregistering or balloting ofa single ballot.

mechanism which includes spring-biased pawls 202 and 208.

acting in conjunction with the drive shaft 196 coupled to the lever 42.Therefore, it will be understood that upon a single rotation of thelever 42, a counting of that ballot or that voter is effectedsimultaneously with the casting of the electors ballot to register thevotes in accordance with the determination and selections made by theelector.

Once the polls close, it is only necessary to open the housing 12 andextraet'the modular mechanism 50 including spools 54 and 56 as well as.the vote register station 84 supported within the housing 12. Ofcourse, the mechanisms 50 may be replaced during a voting day,ifconditions so-require.

'Althoug he invention has been herein shown and i described in what isconceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it isrecognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of theinvention which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein butis to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any andall equivalent devices and apparatus.

I claim:

- l. A balloting device for registering votes comprising:

A. a sealed housing including a wall having means defining therein aplurality of aligned openings;

B. a plurality of manually depressible plungers supported forindependent axial reciprocation within said openings, each of saidplungers being adapted to be manually depressed for casting a vote andpreparatory to registering the vote;

C. plunger biasing means coupled with said plungers adapted tocontinuously urge the plungers into an extended disposition relative tosaid wall;

D. locking means operatively associated with each of said plungersadapted independently to secure each of said plungers in a retracteddisposition, relative to said wall, in v responseto, a'manual depressionthereof;

E. manually operable release means operatively associated with saidlocking means and adapted to be manually manipulated for achieving asimultaneous release of retracted plungers, whereby said plungers aredisplaced by said biasing means; 1

F. a plurality of prenumbered tapes, each bearing thereon a sequence ofstep-identifying indicia serially spaced in an equidistant relationshipalong the surface thereof;

G. tape support means associated with each of said depressible plungerssupporting the tapes for incremental progression through selectedportions of said device;

H. tape advancing means coupled with said tape support means andassociated with the plurality of plungers adapted to be actuated inresponse to a manipulation of the release means, for simultaneouslyadvancing the tapes I through one step of incremental progression, forsimultaneously registering a plurality of cast votes; and

. I. selectively operable vote eradicating means operatively associatedwith the tape advancing means and with each of said depressible plungersadapted selectively to be manipulated for rendering the tape advancingmeans associated with selected depressible plungers inoperative, wherebyregistration of votes cast by a depression of the selected depressibleplungers is precluded as registration of a plurality of cast votes isachieved in response to a manipulation ofthe release means. 7

2. The balloting device ofclaim 1 wherein said tape support meansincludes a plurality of tape supply spools each supporting thereon onetape of the plurality of prenumbered tapes, and a plurality of tapetakeup spools each receiving thereon one tape as the tape is advanced bysaid tape advancing means, and said tape advancing means includes aplurality of pawl and ratchet-mechanisms, each including a ratchet wheel4. The device of claim 3 wherein the locking means includes I a shoulderformed on each of said depressible plungers and releasable stop meansadapted to operatively engage the shoulder as the depressible plunger isdepressed and to restrain the plunger against displacement, whereby thedepressed plunger is retained in its depressed disposition.

5. The device of claim 4 further comprising a vote eradicating meansincluding a plurality of displaceable spring-biased eradicatingplungers, each being mounted for reciprocation through said wall andincludes a downwardly directed camming surface adapted to displace adisplaceable pawl from a peripheral detent and to displace the stopmeans from anengagement with a shoulder, whereby as the eradicatingplungers are displaced in a given direction depressed plungers arereleased from said locking means while said tape advancing meansconcurrently is rendered inoperative.

6. The device of claim 4 wherein said vote eradicating means includes'aplurality of manually reciprocal eradicating plungers, each being pairedwith a manually depressible plunger and including means for removing apawl from a ratchet detent and means for subsequently releasing a stopfrom a shoulder of the paired depressible plungers, whereby the ratchetwheel is rendered inoperative as the eradicating plunger isreciprocated.

7. The'balloting device of claim 1 wherein said selectively operablevote eradicating means includes means adapted to be manually manipulatedto achieve a release of said depressed plungers and simultaneously toachieve an uncoupling of said tape advancing means from the tape supportmeans associated with said selected depressible plungers, whereby arelease of the plungers is accommodated while an advance of the tapessupported by the tape support means associated with said selecteddepressible plungers is precluded.

8. The device of claim 7 wherein said locking means includes a pluralityof dogs, each comprising a shoulder formed on one of said plungers and aspring-biased locking pawl'continuously urged into a seating dispositionrelative to the shoulder, and said manually operable release meansincludes an elongated bar operatively associated with the locking pawland adapted to be manually displaced for simultaneously disis displacedas a manipulation of the balloting lever is effected.

10. A balloting device comprising:

A. a lockable housing;

B. operable balloting means mounted within said housing including aplurality of modules, each module being employed for registering singlevotes and including an independently removable support plate seated insaid housing, said plate mounting a support spool having woundthereabout a preprinted tape bearing indicia indicative of the number ofincrements through which the tape is incrementally advanced through saiddevice, an advancea ble takeup spool coupled with one end of said tapeadapted to receive thereon the tape in a wound disposition as the tapeincrementally is advanced, and tape advancing means including a pawl andratchet mechanism interconnected with said takeup spool adapted toimpart incremental rotation to the takeup spool for incremen- C. aplurality of manually operable spring-biased voting plungers connectedwith the balloting means, each plunger being operatively associated witha pawl and ratchet mechanism and adapted to be depressed for easting asingle vote to be registered through an advancement of the tape and tobe elevated for activating a pawl and ratchet mechanism, whereby anincremental advancement of said tape is effected;

D. a manually displaceable balloting lever operatively coupled with saidballoting means adapted to be manually displaced for actuating theballoting means to elevate the depressed plunger; and

E. selectively operable vote eradicating means operatively associatedwith the voting plungers and balloting means adapted to be selectivelyoperated prior to the displacement of the balloting lever for preventingan activation of pawl and ratchet mechanisms associated with selectedvoting plungers as the plungers are elevated, whereby an incrementaladvancement of selected preprinted tapes is precluded.

11. The device of claim further comprising lockout means operativelyassociated with said voting plungers, as the plungers are arranged inside-by-side alignment and operatively coupled in opposed voting pairs,adapted to respond to a depression of a voting plunger to renderadjacent voting plungers inoperative.

12. The combination of claim 11 further characterized in that eachvoting plunger includes a wedge-shaped camming protrusion and saidlockout means comprises: a plurality of spring-biased, laterallydisplaceable blocks, each block having a curved cam surface disposed inthe path of at least one of the wedge-shaped protrusions of the plungersof each voting pair and so arranged as to be engaged by and laterallydisplaced from the path of the protrusion of one plunger of a pair ofadjacent plungers and pinned by the protrusion in blocking alignmentwith the protrusion of the other plunger of the voting pair to renderthe other plunger inactive, and means for selectively rendering thelockout means inoperable.

13. The device of claim 11 further comprising means defining aregistered vote counter adapted to be actuated by said balloting leverto provide a total of all votes registered.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION patent 3,540,649Dated November 17, 1970 Inventofls) Edwln L. Kill It is certified thaterror appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In the heading to the printed specification, line 2, 620 Date St."should read 602 Date St.

Signed and sealed this 13th day of April 1971.

[SEAL] Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. WILLIAM E SCHUYLER, Attesting Officer Commissionerof Pater

